To crackdown on the menace of fake AYUSH doctors, registration of Ayurvedic, Naturopathy, Siddha, Unani, and Yoga practitioners has been made mandatory in the State.

Non-registration by AYUSH practitioners or any violation of the law by them would attract penalty of Rs. 25,000 for the first offence, Rs. 2 lakh and imprisonment for one year for the second offence, and Rs. 5 lakh and imprisonment for three years for the third offence.

To check the menace of fake doctors and eliminate non-registration of AYUSH doctors, the Legislative Assembly on Thursday passed the Karnataka Ayurvedic, Naturopathy, Siddha, Unani and Yoga Practitioners’ Registration and Medical Practitioners Miscellaneous Provisions (Amendment) Bill, 2016. Health and Family Welfare Minister K.R. Ramesh Kumar, who piloted the Bill, promised that steps would be taken to provide protection for “native doctors” while framing the rules under the Act. Under the proposed law, all AYUSH doctors from other States have to register in Karnataka.

The Karnataka Good Samaritan and Medical Professional (Protection and Regulation During Emergency Situations) Bill was also passed in the Assembly